Accident and Emergency
by Phoenix on cloud nine
Summary: Vince is involved in a hit and run. Will Howard's friendship be enough to pull him out of his shock or will he need to be more than a friend? Stupid summary, so just read it :P
1. Chapter 1

**Hiya! This is probably not very good 'cause I'm tired and hungry lol. After this I'm having cheese on toast! ^_^ Oh yeah, the names of the paramedics and nurses, doctors etc are all stolen from Casualty, I was just way to lazy to make up my own. And there probably isn't a 'Dalston ED', but oh well ;)**

Vince trudged along the road, grumbling at the fact that Howard had made him go and get his own hula-hoops and lucozade, and smiled. To be honest, he wasn't entirely sure _why_ he smiled, because he was pissed off. Or was he? He had moaned to Howard to try and persuade him to go, or at least come with him, but the other man had refused. Apparently some trombone player was on telly, and had a five hour recital that was being broadcast everywhere.

He rolled his eyes. There really was no hope for Howard, even after spending more than ten years with Vince he hadn't picked up one useful bit of style information. Not that Vince really minded anymore. He was really just glad when Howard was around, which was something he'd never tell him, but he was sure Howard knew, in his own way.

Lost in his musings, he hadn't been paying attention to what was happening around him, and walked right into a small child, who had been bouncing a football from hand to hand,

"Jeez, watch where you're going!" Vince said angrily, but felt guilty at the kid's anguished face, "Sorry, I'm just kinda rattled, y'know?"

The child shook his head, a mop of curls bouncing all over,

"What are you doing out here anyway? You shouldn't be on your own, this is quite a busy road" He said, indicating the road next to them. The boy looked up at him and grinned cheekily,

"Thanks, but I'm alright, we had a road safety assembly in school last week. Stop, look, listen," Vince nodded and smiled, "I don't suppose you wanna play a game do you?" The boy asked, bouncing his football, "There isn't really anyone my age living round here".

Vince grinned, quite tempted, never having managed to persuade Howard to play a game, but remembered what he'd come down for, and he wasn't really in the mood when he thought about it, he'd just got his hair _perfect_ before he came out. The child saw he was wavering and said,

"There's a park just over there. You can be goalie if you want" He bribed, sure it was everyone's dream position. Vince smiled and nodded,

"Yeah ok, I just need to go into the shop and get something", the child nodded as well,

"I'll be in the park. My name's Adam by the way"

"I'm Vince" Vince answered and grinned at Adam before heading into the shop, waving as the boy walked off, sure to glance both ways before crossing.

--

After paying, Vince headed out of the shop, remembering Adam mentioned the park, so he headed in that direction, a soft breeze lazily playing across his face, making him breathe deeply and slowly. He jumped as a ball thudded into his feet.

"Vince! Ball!" Adam shouted from the other side of the road as his football thwacked into Vince's toes. Without waiting to see what his new friend would do, Adam ran across the road, to retrieve his ball. Vince's small smile of cheeriness soon turned to a look of absolute horror as a car rounded the corner, going _way_ too fast on a 30 mph road and sped straight into the child, making his small figure crack off the windscreen and roll right over the car. Vince's mouth hung open as the car sped up and continued on it's way. How could anyone do that? To a small child as well.

Vince knew he should have written down the number plate of the car, but all he could do was gaze at the small body in front of him, a pool of blood growing steadily bigger around him and all he could think of was the thud and sickening crack that was emitted from both car and boy at impact. Finally, as other people started to emerge, curious and wanting to know what had made that crash, Vince managed to run over to Adam, lying unnaturally still in the middle of the road. In his haste, he tripped, and with his speed, he flew quite a way, grazing his hands all the way down the road. Ignoring the stabbing pain in them, he got back up.

Getting over to Adam, Vince's heart was beating so much he was surprised other people couldn't hear it. He surveyed the boy with a horror-struck expression, not knowing what to do. He bet Howard would know, but Howard wasn't here, was he? He breathed in heavily, trying to get into a clearer state of mind. There was _so much_ blood.....god how could a small child contain that much? Finally, after the mutterings of the spectators reached his shocked ear drums, something got through and, with shaking hands, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialled 999,

_"Hello, you've reached the emergency services, do you require fire service, police officers or paramedics?"_

"Am...ambulance please"

_"Certainly Sir, one moment,"_ Vince started biting his nails anxiously as he was connected to the ambulance. What if it was too late? What if Adam was already?....

_"Hello Sir? What is you emergency?"_

"Erm, yeah, there's... a little kid was hit by a car...I, there's so much blood, I..." Vince was getting hysterical, hyperventilating,

_"Sir, calm down, where are you?"_ Vince looked around wildly for a street sign, even though he already knew what the street was, but in his confused mind, it didn't register until after he found the sign,

"Tal...Taliskar Road, out-outside the shop on the corner" He could hear the faint sound of someone tapping out this information on the computer,

_"Ok Sir, the paramedics will be with you in about five minutes, there are some stationed quite near you, keep the injured still, don't try and move them"_ Vince nodded, even though they wouldn't be able to see him and thanked them, before hanging up.

He gazed down at Adam. He wanted to listen to his heart, feel his pulse, find some indication of the boy still breathing, but he didn't dare go near him, just in case he did something that might have made it any worse. He didn't even want to hold Adam's hand in case he broke something, or storke his mop of curls, to reassure him. Still, he did what he could, and bent over so his breath tickled the child's ear,

"It's gonna be ok Adam, I swear. I phoned for an ambulance, and they said they'd be here soon. I promise I'll come with you, make sure they call your mum," He spyed the football that caused all of this lying at the side of the road, "I'll bring your ball as well, so when you get better we can have that game I promised". His eyes welled up, staring at this small person, bleeding onto the tarmac, legs bent in awkward angles, making Vince want to heave, but he couldn't take his eyes away.

Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, he heard the sound of sirens in the distance, and soon they had parked next to the two on the road and the paramedics got out.

"Ok love, what happened?" A short podgy woman with blond hair addressed Vince, while doing various medical looking stuff to Adam,

"He... a car sped round the corner, he went... he went right over it I... I couldn't do anything, I..." He was whispering by this point, and the blonde paramedic nodded over to him to her partner,

"Ok my love, this is my partner, Jeff, he's gonna get you into the ambulance as well, get you checked out at the hospital" Vince looked up at her,

"But... but I'm fine, Adam was... he was the one... he..." Jeff patted him on the back and halled him to his feet,

"I know mate, but you're obviously in shock, and I'd worry about you all day if we let you walk away. Also, those hands look pretty nasty, we'd better check them as well" He said, indicating Vince's cut hands, bleeding and slightly burnt from the friction.

"I'm- you can do it later though yeah? You're gonna concentrate on Adam?" Jeff nodded but gave him an oxygen mask,

"Just have a few breaths on that while we sort your mate out. Or is he your son?" Vince shook his head, breathing heavily into the mask,

"I only met him just now, he said he was... said he was bored and asked if I wanted to play football with him, but when I... when I got out the shop, he ran over the road, 'cause his ball..." He remebered his promise to Adam, "I've gotta get him his ball! I promised him I'd take it to hospital for him, I was... I talked to him when we were waiting for you, tried to keep him company..." He looked up at the paramedic, as if begging him to say he'd done the right thing,

"Well done mate, you did good. Tell you what, I'll get that ball while you keep breathing ok?" Vince nodded and put the mask back on with shaking hands. Soon, both he and Adam were in the ambulance as it sped past cars, sirens blaring. All Vince could do was hold Adam's football and stare fixedly on the floor, while the blonde paramedic continued checking the child's 'vitals'.

"You ok pet?" She asked Vince, who nodded and said,

"Fine thanks Miss...." He trailed off. How do you adress a paramedic?

"Dixie," She answered, "Do you know where we can contact his parents at all?" Vince shokk his head, still refusing to make eye contact with anyone,

"I only...I only knew him for a few minutes, we met outside the shop... I just, there was....I couldn't have done anything...." He broke off, tears running down his face, his lungs threatening to work too much again, "There was so much blood!" He eventually finished, and started sobbing into his bleeding hands, ignoring the sting of salty tears in his open wounds as he felt like he was going to pass out. Dixie turned briefly from what she was doing and said to him,

"You couldn't have done anything else sweetheart, you did fine. Now when we get in, you get those hands seen ok? We'll check on you later" Vince nodded morosely, but just couldn't stop the flow of tears as he surveyed his shaking hands and the football in them. Suddenly, the ambulance swerved to a halt and Jeff (Who was driving) said,

"Ok mate, we're here, you go and get checked into A and E, we'll catch you later" Vince nodded, but the paramedics had to gently guide him over there, as he was still stunned and couldn't focus on anything apart from the shaking of his hands.

Once in there was so much commotion Vince didn't know what was going on. He had to try and keep up with Dixie and Jeff who were pushing the trolley that had Adam on it at a phenominal rate whilst speaking very quickly about various rates and drugs. Once they had pushed him through the doors of 'Resuss' (Which Vince later found out was short for resussitation) Dixie said,

"This is Vince Noir, he was with Adam when it happened, he was the one who called us. He's in severe shock and has some pretty bad cuts on his hands" A kind looking nurse nodded to them and said,

Thanks Dixie. Ok Vince, I'm Jessica, if you go and sit in a cubicle I'll admit you in and then come back and sort those cuts out," She paused, seeing the extreme shaking, "Is there anyone I can call for you? Family? Friends?" Vince paled, realising Howard would have been waiting for him for ages,

"Erm, yeah, I think... I think that my friend Howard...he should be on the list of who to call, y'know, on the records..." He stopped, tears cascading down his face. Jessica nodded slowly and steered him towards an empty cubicle, motioned towards the tissues on the side and pulled the curtains aside before walking off to call this Howard.

--

Howard paced the flat anxiously, both home phone and his own clutched in each hand. He would never admit to Vince that he got worried every time he went out drinking, but he reasoned he shouldn't have to worry when he went to the shop. He'd only gone for hula-hoops and lucozade, so he should have been back ages ago. Plus, the sirens that went past about twenty minutes ago did nothing to ease his tension. Little did he know his friend was in that very ambulance. In the quietness of the flat the sudden ring of the phone made Howard jump, before pressing the button quickly and saying,

"Hello?"

_"Hello, this is Jessica Harrison, I'm a nurse at Dalston ED, is this Howard Moon?" _Howard started shaking. He was only listed as being 'next of kin' to one person in their flat,

"Yes, this is, is something wrong? Has something happened to Vince?! Oh god, is he ok?"

_"Don't worry Mr Moon, he's just got a few cuts on his hands, but he's in severe shock, actually the worst case I've seen. Is he normally quite, well, fragile, for want of a better word?"_

"Not really, but it depends what 's happened. What did happen nurse? Can I come down?"

_"Of course, and I'll discuss it with you when you come down, I just think it'll help Vince, he's quite hysterical at the moment, we might need to give him a mild sedative"._ Howard's eyes almost popped,

"Can you wait until I get there? He isn't too fond of needles"

_"It depends, but I'll tell him you're coming. If you could get here soon?..."_ Howard nodded,

"I'm leaving now"

Howard leapt up from where he had sat down in shock. He wanted to cry. What could have happened to Vince that would have required a sedative? Even after all their adventures he hadn't been in shock, Howard was usually the one panicking. Quickly, he scribbled out a note for Naboo and stuck his coat on, before running out the door.

--

"Vince?" Jessica appeared from behind the curtains, and frowned, seeing him sitting curled up at the foot of the hospital bed, shaking like a washing machine, "Vince, I've called Howard..." She stopped as his head jerked up,

"What did he say? Is he coming?" His voice sounded scared, as though he thought his best friend wasn't bothering to come, "Did you tell him what happened?" Jessica shook her head,

"No, I'm going to do that when he gets here."

"So he is coming?"

"Yes, he said he was setting off as soon as he put the phone down" Vince exhaled shakily, a huge weight off his chest as he was told Howard was coming. However, the weight suddenly appeared once more, as his gaze fell upon the ball opposite him, on the chair usually sat upon by visitors,

"What about Adam? Is he gonna be ok?" Jessica smiled at him, trying to calm him down,

"I don't know, but I might be able to find out after I've sorted your hands out" Vince nodded, and allowed her to start cleaning the cuts carefully and gently with a cotton bud.

--

Howard practically ran down the hospital corridors before getting to the front desk and finding a nurse sitting there, sifting through folders,

"Excuse me, my friend, Vince Noir was admitted about half an hour ago, d'you know where he is?" The nurse smiled at him and typed something in on her computer,

"He's in cubicle 3, just that one there" She said, pointing at the only cubicle with it's curtains closed. Oh god, what had happened? What if the shock had been too much for him, what if he'd had a heart attack? Maybe he was lying in there with a cover over him? Howard's heart was beating ten times faster than it should, as he approached the curtain and finally managed to pull together the strength to go in.

He breathed out as he saw Vince having his hand getting stitches put in. He stayed quiet, not wanting to make Vince jump and make the nurse lose concentration. He simply stood there, worried about the very white complexion in his friend's skin, and the shaking that wouldn't stop.

"There we go, you're all done" Jessica smiled at him, this being Howard's cue to announce himself. Coughing, he said hesitantly,

"Er, hi, I..."

"Howard!!" He was stopped by a speeding blur of colour crash into him, throwing it's arms around his neck and clutching at him weakly,

"Careful of your hand there little man" Howard murmered to him. The nurse smiled at him

"I'm guessing you're Howard. I'm Jessica, the nurse who called you?" Howard nodded and smiled at her, merely relieved that Vince was ok. However, his heart plummeted as Jessica said,

"Do you mind if I could have a quiet word with you outside?" She said, which Howard agreed to, but didn't want to pull away from Vince, who was clutching at him as though his life depended on it. Plus, his shaking seemed so much more pronounced as he stood so close to Howard. Running his fingers through his friend's hair, Howard said,

"I've got to speak to the nurse for a moment Vince, just stay here, I won't be long" He soothed, as though he was speaking to a small child or puppy.

"No, please Howard, I need... I..." He started hyperventilating again, making Jessica gently move him out of Howard's grasp and sit him back on the bed, putting an oxygen mask on him,

"Just breathe Vince, I promise we won't be very long" She patted Howard's arm, who smiled once more at Vince and followed her out of the cubicle,

"What's wrong?" Howard asked, a hundred possibilties flying through his head,

"Well as you can see, he's in extreme shock, so I'm going to get him some very sweet tea. Also, the police need to speak to him" As if on cue, two police officers walked round the corner and stood by them, after asking the nurse if it was the right cubicle

"What happened? I'd ask him, but I think he'd just..." He trailed off, remembering how Vince had been shaking,

"He saw a child get hit by a car, which is why his hands were bleeding; he'd ran towards the boy and fell, so he had quite a bit of gravel in there before I could stitch it. Apparently he'd just met the boy, and was about to have a game of football with him". Howard nodded affectionately,

"That's just like Vince. He needs to have some kind of social boost every minute, even if that meant resorting to playing football with a child". The police seemed to be noting this down, and the male officer asked,

"Is it ok if we go in and ask him some questions?" Howard was about to protest before Jessica said,

"I'd appreciate it if you'd wait, he still in shock, so I don't think he'd give you any particularly useful information" The officers nodded,

"We'll wait out here" Jessica nodded as well and said,

"Howard, you can go in and see him, maybe calm him down a bit, I'll get his tea". Howard smiled at her and went back in.

"Hey little man, how are you?" Vince looked up and nodded, at least Howard thought he did, it was hard to tell with the shaking, "Jessica's getting you some tea, with loads of sugar in it" He said, trying to get Vince to smile, but to no avail. Vince made an odd little sob sound as he sat there, and looked so pathetic Howard couldn't help sitting next to him an saying,

"Come here" And offering his arms out for a hug, which Vince fell into, absolutely shattered with the shock, but was unable to relax, the adrenaline still working it's way round his system. Howard started rubbing his back and storking his hair, whilst whispering,

"It's ok Vince, you're fine, it'll all be ok" Vince looked up at him, aghast,

"How can it be Howard?" He asked, his voice cracking with emotion, "I should've done more, I... why did I wait so long before...I could've..." He dissolved into sobs and snuggled into Howard as the older man tried to calm him down. He was horrified that this should happen to Vince of all people, the sunshine kid. How would he ever be able to get the image out of his head, of the child being ran over? All Howard could do was continue to cradle him, as he sobbed and shook in Howard's arms.

A head peeped through the curtain, making Howard look up, to see an unkown face looking back at him,

"Alright mate, name's Jeff, I'm the paramedic who picked your friend up, we came to see how he was" Howard nodded and said,

"He's, well..." he gestured at Vince who was still shaking and bawling into Howard's jacket, Dixie, the blonde paramedic came in as well,

"Have they given him anything?"

"The nurse went to get him some sweet tea, and they said they might have to get him a mild sedative" He said this last bit quieter, so as not to scare Vince even more. Jeff nodded and said,

"Hi Vince, we told you we'd check in on ya, thought you'd like to know how Adam's doing" Vince's gaze shot up and he stared at Jeff, hiccoughing,

"How i...is he?"

"We just checked on him and it seems they got him stable, but he crashed a few times in theatre" Vince cocked his head to the side like a dog,

"Crashed?" Howard bit his lip, wondering how Vince would react,

"His heart stopped for a while before they managed to restart it, but he's back now and that's what counts"

"So he... so he _died_?" Jeff got a sharp slap round the side from Dixie,

"Not really mate, he's fine at the mo, he's a fighter that one, any longer and he might have, but you called us just in time" He said it hoping to make Vince feel better, but he paled even more so and said,

"B...but it would have helped if I'd called you sooner though right? I, I mean, if I called you sooner he might not have cr-crashed at all" Howard hugged him closer to his body and sighed,

"Vince, you shouldn't focus on what _might_ have happened. Didn't you hear? He's fine now, that's the main thing" He jumped as Vince suddenly exploded,

"But I should have called sooner! All I could do was st...stare at him, and then when I went over, h-he was just lying there, I couldn't...couldn't do anything, I...I didn't even hold his hand to help him, I just, just talked to him! I didn't even...even keep my promise! I told him I'd get them to call his mum, and look at what happened! I didn't even do that! I only managed to get them to call you!" Dixie broke in,

"Sweetheart, you did everything you should have done, you didn't move him, you kept him company, you called us,"

"But.." Vince interrupted, before Dixie interrupted _him_,

"You called us at exactly the right time, and they've called his mother, she's coming in"

"He might even wake up soon," Jeff chipped in, "You made a good call anyway mate, he was lucky to have you" Vince glowed and stopped sniffing, but was still shaking, and Howard wondered whether it would ever go away. The paramedics went out after thanking Vince for staying with their patient, just as Jessica came back in,

"Well, you're certainly popular aren't you?" She said, smiling, "Here, drink it all" She offered the cup to Vince, who took it and started sipping, still leaning against Howard, who continued to stroke his hair and talk to him about anything while the younger man continued to drink. When he was done, the shaking had subsided slightly, which Jessica thought was a good time to call the police in,

"Mr Noir, we just need to ask you a few questions about what you saw" Vince squeaked in fright and clung onto Howard, who wrapped his arm around his friend's waist and said,

"Vince, it needs to be done, you can't let whoever did it get away with it"

"But I'm useless Howard! I didn't even...didn't even get the number plate, or see the person in the car. I'm no use whatsoever" He hid his head in Howard's shoulder, sniffing every so often as the police jotted a few things down before asking,

"I know it's hard Vince, but you need to relax and tell us what happened, how about you tell us what happened when you and Adam met?" Vince clutched at Howard's hand, like a life line and began,

"I...I went to the shop to get some stuff, and I walked into...into him by accident, I said sorry and asked him if he was with anyone, and told him the road was dangerous, so he should watch out," He sniffed and carried on, "He said he'd...he'd just had a road safety assembly, and asked if I wanted to play football. I said ok, 'cause I never get to play it at home," He fixed Howard with an aprehensive glance before continuing, "And he said he'd meet me at the park, then when I came out, his ball had rolled out and it...it hit my foot, and he asked for it, but when I didn't do anything, he ran across, and then...then, the car....he crashed off the windscreen, and his body, and the sound, he cracked off it, and the car, it just kept going...I, it's all my fault!!" He howled into Howard's shirt, leaving the police officers bemused.

"Vince, it wasn't your fault. It was whoever was driving that car! Listen to me," He said, cupping Vince's face in his hands, "You did everything perfectly, you called the ambulance, stayed with him. You were perfect, like always. I'm so proud of you" He practically whispered this last part, but Vince heard and stopped crying, believing him. Looking up at the police officers, he asked with a shaky voice,

"Can, can I go and see...go and see Adam now?" His watery blue eyes won the police over and they nodded, letting him and Howard out of the cubicle,

"We'll need a statement from Adam as well," They said to Jessica, "When he's strong enough", Jessica nodded,

"You should go and ask his doctor, he'll be in the ED" They both turned to go, leaving Jessica to tidy the bed a little, and smile at the two friends who were walking towards the ED, Howard's arm wrapped around Vince's waist, and Vince's head resting on Howard's shoulder.

**I know, I shouldn't be writing a new story when I'm in the middle of one already, but this had to be written. I think it's gonna be two chapters, so watch out for it ;)  
Please review, I'm bored and lonely, so they'd make me feel better ;P**


	2. Chapter 2

**Here ya go, round 2 ;) Again, any hospital staff names are stolen from Casualty ^_^  
Oh yeah, defibrillators are those paddles they shock you with to restart your heart ;)**

Vince rested his forehead against the doors of 'resuss', his breath misting up the window as he stared at the small body, heavily bandaged and with various tubes running in and out of him. Howard's hand rested on his shoulder in an attempt to give him some sort of comfort. And it did help, to a certain extent, his breathing stayed even and the shaking was gradually subsiding, but Howard was still concerned about the pale, ghost-like skin of his friend.

"Vince, maybe...maybe it would be best if, you left it a while, maybe came back when he's better. You could bring him a present or something..." This fell on deaf ears as Vince continued to gaze into the room, completely zoned out. He could barely feel Howard's hands on his shoulder. Suddenly, a high pitched beep was being emitted from one of the machines Adam was attached to. Howard watched in horror as the doctors rushed over, all snapping on rubber gloves. One started pummeling the boy's chest as the others watched various machine screens grouped around Adam's bed.

"What's happening?!" Vince yelped, staring into the theatre where the doctors were now using the defibrillators on the small body, "What are they doing?!" Howard looked down at his best friend sadly. Sometimes childish ignorance wasn't a good thing, but surely Vince knew what was happening? Even if he didn't like or understand it, he still knew what was going on. Still, his friend needed him right now, not just him stood there brooding, doing nothing at all. Gently pulling Vince away from where he was stood, as if trying to walk right through the door, he managed to turn him so he was facing the older man,

"Come on little man, he'll be fine, just breathe and look at me. Look at me" He murmured again, when Vince failed to do it the first time. As he looked into the deep blue eyes, bright with scared tears, Howard almost started crying himself. He almost wanted to run in there and scream at Adam, 'Why did you have to do that? Don't you realise what you've done? Vince will never get that image out of his head!', but getting angry wouldn't solve anything, he knew.

"Excuse me" said a woman as she pushed past them, desperate to get into the room. She rushed in as Howard watched, still forbidding Vince to turn and around and cradling him to his chest. She started to have an argument with a nurse, while the doctor was shouting for her to be taken out,

"I'm his mother!" She screamed at them, breaking down at the sight of her child lying motionless in the hospital bed. Howard's heart plummeted at the sight of it. He needed to get Vince out of here. The mother would be told what happened and, like Vince, blame the younger man for it all. Plus, he didn't want to seem really morbid, but he didn't think the kid would make it. At all. He needed to get Vince away before that happened.

"Why don't we go sit you back in your cubicle, wait until they've made him better before we go in" He coaxed, trying to take Vince away before...

"Time of death..." He heard the doctor's muffled voice and the mother's agonizing scream before he felt Vince collapse under him, the strain of the whole thing taking it's toll until he couldn't bear it any longer and fainted, only being held up by Howard's arms.

"Can I have some help please?!" Howard yelled, cringing as he knew he sounded like someone out of a bad medical drama. Still it got people's attention and soon several nurses were gathered around him, helping him take Vince back to his cubicle. He was only out for about five minutes tops, but even so, when he started making small mumbling noises and slowly opening his eyes, Howard was relieved. He put his hand over Vince's and said,

"Don't sit up yet Vince, just relax" Vince nodded sleepily, but gasped and burst into tears,

"Adam!" He said, between sobs, and not even Howard could stop his pathetic wailing as he sobbed so much he nearly passed out,

"Vince, you have to calm down. I know what you saw was horrible, but I know that you helped. If you hadn't been with him, and called the ambulance, he would have had even less time..." Vince buried his head in Howard's arm when he tried to put it round the man in the bed.

Vince felt completely empty inside. Well, not empty exactly... it was hard to explain how he felt. Everything in him was screaming, out of sorrow, out of guilt, out of.... Howard's arms were still curled around him, making him feel safe. However, something else stirred within him, and as he looked into Howard's eyes, he wanted to die. How could he be sat here crying when he had just discovered he was in love? The whole rush of feelings came to suddenly. Now even trying to hold back his tears, Vince just continued to cry onto Howard's shoulder, having moved upwards slightly.

Howard looked down at his friend. How would he ever get over this? How would Vince, the sunshine kid, ever forget seeing a small child get ran over? And then dying? He knew it wasn't the right time_ at all_ to think this, but Vince had never been more beautiful. Tragically beautiful, with the tears sliding down his face, somehow highlighting his perfect features. His hair adorably ruffled and he honestly didn't care. Howard had always loved him, it was impossible not to. He decided to put this to the back of his mind, and just be a really good friend to him at the moment. That's all he needed. He didn't need some 'northern jazzy freak' trying to get Vince to notice him. No, what he needed was a simple friend.

As Vince was finally calming down, snuffling and hiccoughing the curtains slid open and another nurse, not one they were familiar with peeked in,

"Hiya! My name's Kelsie, how are you feeling Vince?" Vince nodded but grimaced, a headache already in full swing after the torrents of water were expelled from his eyes. Kelsie picked up on this and said,

"Do you want anything? Paracetamol?" Vince was going to protest, but Howard squeezed his hand and said,

"Yes please, he needs it" Kelsie nodded and walked out. From the gap in the curtains they saw her rummaging in the medicine cabinet. Suddenly, yet _another_ nurse came in.

"Vince!" She said, pleasantly, and Howard realised it was Jessica, probably checking on him, he thought, "Vince, I've got some good news for you" She smiled as some colour started to come back into his cheeks and he looked up, sniffing. He still wouldn't let go of Howard, but he was paying attention to something.

"Adam's alright! His mother insisted on one more round of CPR, so they had to comply, as they hadn't finished announcing him yet..."

"Announcing?" Vince asked, interrupting, but a spark coming back into his eyes.

"That's what you heard, when they were announcing his time of death. anyway, they last round payed off and they've finally declared him stable enough to be moved into a ward" Vince's face lit up, making Howard melt inwardly. The younger man tried to leap up, but his pounding head stopped him from doing that.

"Owwie... can I go and see Adam?" Jessica chewed her lip, not sure. No-one had given her any instructions concerning the little boy, and that included who could or couldn't visit him, but she knew the mother was with him, and if she knew who Vince was, chances are she would blame him, which was something Jessica wanted to avoid, her patient already having quite a lot of stress at the moment.

"Erm, I think you can," She said, backing down under those blue eyes, "But I have to warn you, his mother will be there, and if you tell her that you were with Adam when it happened, chances are she might blame you. It wasn't your fault at all though" She said quickly, scared of Vince breaking down again.

Howard nodded, agreeing with her and, not trying to extract himself from Vince just yet, and said to Vince,

"Vince, she'll be really sad, so try not to listen to anything she says. In fact, why don't we just come back another time?" He looked right into Vince's eyes, both feeling the extreme chemistry and fireworks, and Vince eventually lowered his head, exhausted,

"Ok," Howard squeezed his arm one more time, but Vince clutched at his arm as they made to get up, "No! Wait! I told him I'd give him his football!" He looked wildly around the cubicle and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw it sat on the visitor chair. Grabbing it, he looked up at Jessica and said,

"I can at least give him this right?" His voice was as hopeful as a child's on Christmas day, and Jessica couldn't let him down. Despite only knowing him for about, at least an hour and a half, she felt a warm affection for him as she nodded and smiled, and as he and Howard exited the cubicle, she touched Howard's arm,

"Don't think I didn't see all that between you," She smiled, knowingly, "Be gentle with him, he's still under quite a bit of strain" Howard smiled and nodded, before being pulled away by a slightly shaking hand.

--

As Vince looked up and down the various beds in the ward, looking distinctly nervous, Howard wondered if this was such a good idea. Vince was still in shock, that would only be duplicated if there was a fierce confrontation with the mother. However, Vince squeaked and pulled Howard faster as he saw a bed that had not only a boy on his own iin it, but an awake boy in it,

"Adam!" The boy looked up when he heard his name being called and grinned, his eyes lighting up,

"Vince! C'mere, c'mere, look at this!!" Vince beamed and went over, scared to sit by him in case he hurt the boy, but Howard pushed him forward, "Check out these scars!" He said proudly and pulled his hospital gown upwards slightly so they both saw an impressive scar on his leg. Vince paled and bit his lip,

"I am so sorry Adam. I should've... I dunno, I..." Howard patted him on the arm and said,

"Stop apologising Vince, it won't do any good" To his surprise, Adam piped up,

"Yeah Vince, toughen up, it wasn't your fault anyway!" Vince looked up, barely daring to believe it,

"R-really?"

"U-huh! My mum already gave me this huge lecture about not watching what I was doing, so I guess she thinks it was more my fault than yours!" Vince looked over at Howard, eyes shining, making Howard's leap in happiness, it felt like it had been years since Vince had smiled properly without any doubt in his face. He then pouted slightly, trying to remember something,

"Erm... oh yeah! I don't know if you realised, but when I was waiting with you, I promised you we'd have that football game, so I've brought it for you" He produced it from behind his back, enjoying seeing the ecstatic look on the small boy's face,

"Wow! You picked it up for me? I asked Mum about it, and she said she'd get me another, but now she doesn't have to! Thanks Vince" He looked up at the blushing mod with adoration in his eyes, as if he was the most wonderful thing in the world. _Which_, Howard reasoned, _is quite true. _Suddenly, Howard's phone rang and, pulling it out of his pocket, he read the caller ID. Ah, Naboo would be home now and would more than likely have read his note. What had he put again?

"Hey Naboo, how are things?"

_"Is Vince ok?"_

"Yeah he's fine, what did I write in the note?"

_"You wrote, 'Vince in hospital, I've taken van, we need more orange juice"_

"Oh," Howard said, going silent for a minute, "Listen Naboo, I need to go, I shouldn't be using this is here"

_"Wait! What happened to Vince?"_

"I'll tell you when we get back to the flat" He promised. With that he rung off and switched the phone off.

He sat down back next to Vince who chatted to Adam about god knows what, and smiled. He loved seeing Vince happy, and there had been hundreds of moments today when he wondered if he would ever be happy again. This happiness soon gave way to worry as Howard heard,

"Who are you? How do you know my son?" A confused an slightly wary tone caught his ears as he turned as saw the woman who almost collapsed in resuss about half an hour ago.

"Hello, my name's Howard Moon," He held out a hand for her to shake, which she shook, but cautiously, "And this is Vince Noir he phoned for the ambulance" Howard said, trying to just not mention the fact that Vince was there when it happened,

"Oh! Yes, Adam told me about you!" She said to Vince, and swept him up in a hug, "Thank you so much Vince! If you hadn't been there, I don't know what would have happened!" Vince looked bemused but latched onto her, hugging her tightly and sniffing,

"Thank you. I... I thought it was my fault, 'cause..." In an instant, this motherly figure pulled Vince away from her by his ear,

"Don't you _dare _think that!" She shouted, making Howard wince, feeling sorry for his friend, "Don't you dare Mr Noir! You saved my son's life!"

"But I was there!" Vince whimpered, "I should have done something!" This got him a further twist on the ear, Howard now almost amused at the situation Vince was in,

"You were absolutely perfect!"

"That's what I told him" Howard muttered, now amused as Vince was starting to look like a guilty child,

"And if you _don't _mind, I would like your phone number. Apparently you owe my son a football game?" She looked so strict that Vince giggled slightly as Adam looked ecstatic. Howard smiled, for some reason the belt across his chest had been loosened after hearing his friend laugh. It was the first time he had laughed since it all began. After a few goodbyes, Howard led Vince out of the hospital and said,

"The van's parked over there, c'mon, I'll even make you a hot chocolate if you want" Vince turned to face him and grinned,

"Genius! Cheers Howard" Howard twinkled at how happy his friend was, and at the noticeable glances he kept giving him before looking away as soon as Howard looked over. He grinned all the way back.

--

Vince curled up on the sofa, a blanket wrapped around him (The heating was broken) and was warming his hands, which were wrapped around a mug full of hot chocolate covered in whipped cream and marshmallows. He sighed and and started thinking about today. He shivered as he remembered the sight and sound of Adam being smashed off a car and squeezed his eyes shut, hoping the image would fade away.

"Vince?" Asked a curious voice from the doorway. Howard had appeared with a cup of tea, "Are you alright?" Vince nodded and tried to smile, but it was hard-going. Howard sighed and went to sit next to him,

"Vince, you can talk about you know. With me. I'm here for you" He put his hand over Vince's, making the younger man's heart leap and he stuttered slightly as he said,

"Erm, I'm... I'm fine Howard, I mean... I guess I'm a bit shook up about it all, but it's not like I can...not like I can still remember the sound or anything..." With that he broke down, Howard carefully pulling the drink out of his hand and placing it on the table. Simultaneously doing the same with his own, he gently pulled Vince across so that the man was almost lying on the sofa, his head resting on Howard's lap. Howard started combing his fingers through his hair,

"Vince, you know you need to put all this behind you," He said quietly, "It wasn't your fault, even Adam and his mum said so. Everyone's fine, and you are too" Vince sniffed and suddenly sat up, rubbing at his eyes like a little kid does after a nightmare. Looking Howard straight in the eyes, he leaned in a kissed him on the cheek,

"Thank you" he whispered, before getting up and walking to their bedroom. Howard sat there stunned. What the hell was that? _It's just because he's really fragile at the moment_, Howard reasoned, _and I'm showing him a lot of sympathy and attention._

Lost in his musings, he didn't hear the door open and jumped when Naboo appeared next to him,

"So? How's Vince?" Howard looked up, his face etched with tiredness,

"He's fine, he saw a little kid get hit by a car, and he needed to go in for shock and stitches, and he's completely wiped. Because he was there he thought it was his fault, thought he should've done more" Naboo blinked,

"Shit," Was all he said, but managed to add more, "Is the kid ok?" Howard nodded,

"He's fine, Vince just owes him a game of football. That's why he was there, he was about to play football with him" Naboo smiled,

"Do you want me to make a potion or something? Calm him down?" Howard looked down the hallway at their door.

"Nah, he'll be fine" Howard announced, actually believing himself as Naboo shrugged and went to turn the kettle on. Unconsciously, Howard gently touched the spot Vince had kissed him, slightly open mouthed and not answering when Naboo asked him if they had any orange juice.

--

The next day, Vince appeared out of their bedroom. He wasn't as happy and bouncy as Howard hoped, but he was much better than he had been yesterday,

"Morning little man," Howard said warmly, "Naboo gave us the day off, what do you want to do?" Vince looked thrilled at being able to choose,

"Can we do something that's just me and you?" He asked, eyes shining hopefully,

"Of course" Howard answered, slightly touched that Vince wanted to be with just him. Either that or he felt sorry for him. But then why that kiss last night?....

"Genius! Ok, I pick...that park opposite the corner shop, wait! The corner shop first, I forgot my hula-hoops and lucozade the other day!" Howard just nodded as Vince skipped off to go and get ready. It was obvious why Vince wanted to go there, precisely where it happened, but Howard chose to ignore this in the hope that he was just being slightly paranoid and that Vince simply wanted to go there because it was quite a nice place to be.

They got out of the flat quite quickly and trudged along the road. Vince sighed shakily. It was quite nice to be back in the fresh air, but maybe he had made a mistake? Would he suddenly have an all-out panic attack as they came to the spot? Would he break down, leaving Howard to look embarrased at having to haul him back? He started shaking again, he could see where it had happened, they were coming closer to it...

"Howard, I think I've changed my mind, I wanna go home" He murmured, tugging at Howard's coat like a child. Howard looked down sadly. Vince needed to be out, it wasn't healthy for him to sit in the flat all day.

"How about we go round this way," He said, steering Vince down a different street, "We can get into the park just as easily" Vince nodded but didn't let go of his death grip on Howard's jacket.

--

In the park, there were people taking runs, couples out, sat on benches and chatting, and children running, some walking their dogs, others on scooters or bikes. Vince smiled at all the movement and, forgetting what they were near to, could think of no place he'd rather be right now.

"Howard? Do you want to sit on a bench?" He asked, motioning towards one that was quite near a couple engaged in a tongue-wrestling match. Howard gulped at the sight but nodded, sure to be the one with his back facing them, which meant that Vince was the one left to watch them. He giggled and put his eyes down, not wanting them to feel like they were on display. He looked up at Howard, who was looking back at him, smiling as he saw how relaxed his friend was. Vince smiled some more, never really appreciating just how handsome Howard was. Vince nibbled his lip, trying to think of a way to tell Howard how he felt. Ok, so he was a bit of a coward, but never about things like this. So why was it atking him so long to say a few words?

There was a similar battle waging in Howard's head at this point. Sure Vince had kissed him last night, but that was on the cheek, it didn't mean anything. It was just Vince's way of displaying affection. So why did Howard find his hand creeping towards Vince's? Why was he edging closer, praying that Vince wouldn't notice and edge away? Wait, was Vince shifting closer as well? Nah, it was because he was cold, that's why. And his lips are cold, so he's licking them to...

Howard let out a little strangled squeak as he couldn't tear his eyes away from his friend. Should he just go for it? If Vince pushed him away, yeah he would probably die, but if he didn't? Suddenly, he thoughts were interrupted as he felt lips on his own, finally focusing, he was met with a blurred image of Vince right next to him, having closed the gap between the two of them. Howard closed his eyes and started to kiss back, not wanting Vince to think he didn't want to.

Vince's heart started doing somersalts and letting off fireworks as he could feel the unmistakeable touch of someone kissing back. He smiled as he kissed, all bad thoughts about yesterday sweeping away as he and Howard were stuck together in a warm and sweet embrace.

Finally surfacing for air, Vince smiled shyly at Howard, his hair falling in front of his eyes as he ducked his head but continued looking at Howard. Unable to stay in the silence, he broke it,

"So er... you ok?" He mentally kicked himself as he realised how stupid that must have sounded. Fortunately, Howard smiled and said,

"Now I am" And put his fingers under Vince's chin, pushing it up so they were looking at each other once more. Vince grinned and they walked back to the flat, hand in hand.

**--3 months later--**

"Vince! Over there! By that tree! No by your left! Your other left!" Howard almost collapsed with laughter as his boyfriend was practically running in circles, trying to run after a football that a small boy ahd kicked him. They had gotten a call for Adam himself a few weeks ago saying that he'd had to rest but he'd love to still have that football game. So they had turned up in that same park, and now Howard was sat on a bench watching Vince and Adam play. Vince had never looked so happy, and his cheeks had gained colour he never knew existed as his eyes shone.

He still had nightmares though. He'd often wake up breathing heavily, moaning about the sound, and the crack he made off the windscreen, but Howard had been able to calm him, rubbing his back and whispering to him, softly kissing him on the neck, making him fall asleep again. It was hard work but he had to. He didn't want to see the man he loved constantly tormented by this. And he was getting better. It was less frequent, and Howard was sure after this there'd be no more. Vince had seen that even Adam had put it behind him, so it wouldn't be long before Vince joined him.

Soon, the game was over, Vince losing phenominally (Although Howard had a theory he'd done that on purpose) as Adam cheered in victory. After a few goodbyes, they parted ways, Vince giving Adam a hug before walking over the the bench, smiling happily as he threw himself down,

"Hiya!" He grinned, issuing Howard a kiss before he could say anything. Howard happily kissed back, and when they were apart, Vince said,

"Thanks Howard" The older man was puzzled and replied,

"Why? What for?"

"For everything you did, y'know? I believed you when you said it wasn't my fault, and you set up the whole meeting. Thanks" Howard wrinkled his nose up,

"Everyone told you it wasn't your fault Vince, you believed them" Vince shook his head,

"Not really. I only _properly _believed it when you told me" He smiled and snuggled into Howard's arms,

"So no more nightmares d'you think?" Howard asked. Vince looked up, smiling coyly,

"Oh I don't think we'll have much time for sleep, let alone nightmares"

**As my good friend Roz would say, Ta da! Anywho, thanks for reading it, it took me a while, 'cause I was debating whether or not to let Adam live _and_ whether his mum would be forgiving or not. Hopefully this meets everyone's standards ;) Thanks again, and please review! :)**


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